Storytime
by TMI
Summary: Three-shot. Angel and Nudge have a plot to get Max and Fang together that involves princesses, storytime, stencils, and their own original book. Will it work? Or will Max just freak out again, like she always does? Review please! and Merry Christmas!  TMI
1. Reading Princess Stories!

**Hey peoples! Story idea!**

**MERRY CHRISTMAS!**

**Disclaimer: I don't own the one line of dialogue in here that was in the book series. You'll recognize it. XD I also don't own Advil, although I need one for my headache… =( AND the stories Max is reading are all in an actual book, so you can't blame me for their mild crappiness. XD**

Max's POV

"Max! Max! Can you please tell us a story?" Angel jumped up and down in front of me, her Bambi eyes on full blast. I tried to shield myself from their power, but to no avail. Dang it. Knowing Angel, she would want some lovey-dovey story about princesses.

"Fine," I told her wearily, uncovering my eyes. Angel cheered, then ran up the stairs to get Nudge. I heard someone laugh quietly behind me, and whirled around. It was Fang. "Jeez Fang! Is it possible for you to generate some sort of noise when you walk? You keep sneaking up on me!" I complained, glaring the two inches up at him. He smiled his secretive Fang-smile, and I had a hard time keeping my thoughts clear. Wait, what? Fang wasn't like that! He didn't like me more than a sister, of course he wouldn't. Would he?

"But it's so fun to scare you," he protested, his dark voice hinting at suppressed laughter. I glared at him again and turned around quickly, so my long braid flew off my shoulder and thwacked him in the chest. Hard. Fang coughed on impact, and I grinned. "Ow, Max! That hurt! Do you braid your hair with rocks or something?" he demanded. I grinned at him again, happy to use my never-fail comeback.

"Why, is your head missing some?" Fang scowled at me, and I laughed. Score one for Max!

"You know, that really isn't fair," he told me seriously, taking a step forward. I refused to let my heart speed up; Fang was practically my freaking brother for Pete's sake! "I don't think that's very nice of you, Max." Fang took another step, closing the distance until we were about an inch apart. "Not very nice at all." He tilted his head down slightly and stared directly in my eyes, his gaze so intense that I couldn't look away. Unconsciously, I shuffled just a little bit closer when-

"We're ready Max!" Nudge sang, skipping down the stairs. Lightning-quick, Fang and I jumped apart, not looking at each other. What the fnick had just happened? Nudge reached the bottom of the staircase, Angel right behind her. "Max? Are you okay? You look kind of… dazed," Nudge asked me worriedly. I shook my head to clear it, plastering on a bright smile.

"Nah, I'm okay Nudge. I was just spacing for a second," I told her quickly. Glancing at the book in her hands, I mentally groaned. "You want me to read you a pink princess stencil book?" I asked her incredulously. Nudge frowned, and Angel crossed her arms.

"What's wrong with the color pink?" They asked simultaneously. I just looked at them, and they burst out laughing at the expression on my face.

"It's okay Max, it's not like we're asking you to _wear _pink or anything. We know it isn't your favorite color, even though you look amazing in it like remember at that dance we went to for Dr Martinez's society and we forced you into that pink dress and you had your hair up and you were soooo pretty and Fang was completely-" Nudge started to ramble, but when he heard his name, Fang quickly cut her off.

"That's enough, Nudge," he announced loudly. She stopped and looked at him apologetically.

"Sorry Fang that just slipped out I wasn't going to say anything important actually now that I think about it I was going to but I'm sorry Fang it was an accident I didn't mean to say you were completely in love with-" Nudge rambled on again in her apology, but at her last words Fang slapped a hand across her mouth.

"I know that I was completely in love with the mini hot dogs Nudge," he stared at her until she nodded, then took his hand off her mouth again. I stared at them, completely confused by their little exchange. Somehow, I got the feeling Nudge wasn't originally going to say 'mini hot dogs'.

"Nudge what were you-" I began, but Angel cut me off with a bright smile.

"Max can we go read the stories now? It's already nine thirty and we have to be asleep by ten!" she complained. I frowned at her. What was with cutting me off at the beginning of my sentence.? And she didn't have to be asleep by ten, what was Angel talking about?

_ What you were going to ask is something you don't have to know right now, Max. He'll tell you later._ Angel explained in my head.

_He? You mean Fang?_ My head started to cloud even when I thought the name. What the heck? Something was definitely wrong with me. Maybe I need an Advil or something…

_Yeah, Fang will tell you about what Nudge was going to say. But right now can you read us the stories? _Angel asked me sweetly. I grinned.

"Yeah Ange, we can read stories now," I told her aloud. She smiled, well, angelically at me, and skipped back up the stairs. She and Nudge chattered excitedly about princesses and a girl named Justine Beaver all the way up the stairs. Resignedly, I followed them up the stairs. At the top I heard the tiniest whisper of clothes shifting, and spun around to find Fang directly behind me. Again. "Jeez! Make noise! That is an order!" I yelled at him, getting annoyed for some reason. I was so mixed up inside that I didn't know how to act. Fang just smiled at me and followed me down the hallway to the room Angel and Nudge shared. I glared at him, but he only shrugged innocently, smiling his Fang-smile again.

"I want to listen to you read the princess stories," he answered my unspoken question easily, laughter hidden in his dark eyes. I ignored the fluttering in my stomach that had randomly decided to be present today, instead turning around and silently opening the door to the girls' room.

Nudge and Angel were already in their nightgowns, braiding each others' hair on Angel's bed. They looked up as Fang and I entered the room, and smiled brightly at us. "Story time," I announced, my voice decidedly unenthusiastic. Fang elbowed me, and I yelped, before plastering a sickly sweet smile on my face. "I mean, STORY TIME!" I sang at the top of my lungs. Angel and Nudge cheered happily at my words, shooting thankful grins at Fang. Nudge scrambled off of Angel's bed and into her own, the purple-covered bed parallel to Angel's pink-covered one. As the girls snuggled into their covers, I dragged Nudge's neon green bean bag into the space between the beds, plopping down into it with a loud crunch. I shifted, squishing the beads of stuffing inside, listening to the crackling sounds. Fang quirked an eyebrow as he sat down on the carpet in front of me, leaning his back against Angel's bed.

"Nice, Max," he commented, staring at me as I made the bean bag more comfortable. I glared at him, but it wasn't my usual Killer Max glare, only a weaker one. I was about to make a snappy retort back at the suddenly grinning bird kid when a large pink book sailed off Angel's bed and into my lap.

"Ouch!" I complained, rubbing my wrist. The large pink monstrosity Angel wanted me to read had connected with my arm as it fell. "Watch where you throw things, Angel!"

"Sorry Max," she apologized. Angel adjusted her blond curls and looked at me adoringly. "Can you read the stories now?"

"Wait a sec- stories? As in more than one?" I asked confusedly. "I said I would read _one _story!" Nudge and Angel turned their Bambi eyes on me, full blast. I tried to look away, but it was too late. The power of their adorable faces had caught me, straight on. "Ugh…" I groaned unwillingly, scowling.

"You know you're going to read them the whole book Max, so just start," Fang suggested, his tone reasonable. Glaring down at the large pink book, I read the title. _Princess Stencil Book._ How original. Finally, I opened the cover, looking evilly at the page of fancy script, princess stencil, and storybook scene on the opposite page. I wondered how flammable this book was…

"Fine," I ground out. Nudge and Angel bounced in their beds excitedly, no-doubt wanting to squeal at the top of their lungs. I flipped through the pages of the book, finding that there were five different stories, stencils, and cute little princessy pictures. "Cinderella is first," I decided.

**Fang's POV**

Nudge and Angel looked over the edges of their beds, craning their necks to see the picture better over Max's head. Max looked really disgruntled, but all of us knew that she had resigned herself to reading all five princess stories by now.

_Fang, are you going to tell Max you love her?_ Angel's voice butted into my thoughts. I sat up straight, alarm flashing through my mind.

_Ange, can you please warn me when you're going to suddenly thought-speak to me? _I asked her, my mind-voice slightly strained. She giggled, grinning at me.

_Sorry Fang, I was just wondering. Me and Nudge want you guys to get together already! Can you tell her tonight? Pleeease?_

_ Maybe,_ I hedged. _It depends on whether she's spitting poison after reading all those princess stories or not. _

_ Okay, that's reasonable, _Angel agreed. _I want to listen to Max read now._

_ Yeah, me too. _We fell silent, and listened intently as Max read, rubbing a finger absentmindedly against her full lower lip.

"Long ago, Cinderella lived in a big house with her two _cruel _stepsisters. They were so jealous of her beauty that they treated her like a _servant!"_ Max looked up at Nudge with an expression of mock horror on her beautiful face. "Oh no! Not like a servant! Anything but that!" she gasped, laying a hand against her forehead, her eyes fluttering closed.

Angel cuffed the back of Max's head. "Keep reading!" The seven-year-old ordered imperiously, tossing her blond curls. Max raised an eyebrow at her, but obeyed. I could tell she was starting to have fun with this.

"One day, there was a great excitement when an invitation to a grand ball arrived from the palace. Cinderella _longed _to go to the ball, but her stepsisters made her stay home." Max paused to add in her own interjections. "Oh the _tragedy!"_ Nudge coughed loudly, and Max grinned. "As Cinderella sat _crying _in the kitchen, her _Fairy Godmother_ _appeared!_ Waving her wand, she produced a _beautiful _ ball gown for Cinderella and a _gleaming _coach to take her to the ball. 'But you must be back by midnight!' she warned." Max wagged a finger sternly in the air as she read the fairy godmother's words. I smiled softly, watching her eyes light up as she really got into the story. Max would never admit it, not even if her life was in jeopardy, that she actually did enjoy reading princess stories to Nudge and Angel. This would be such great blackmail if I didn't love her…

"The Prince was _dazzled _by Cinderella's beauty and danced with _no one_ else. She was so happy that she did not notice the time. As the clock struck midnight she fled in _horror _from the ballroom, leaving behind a _glass slipper._" Angel and Nudge gasped in practiced awe; they had heard Cinderella millions of times, but they always liked to react. "The Prince visited _every house in the land _looking for the girl who fit the glass slipper. At last he found Cinderella, dressed in _rags!" _Nudge grimaced.

"I always felt bad for her there because at the ball she was wearing _the most _BEAUTEOUS dress, and then the second time the Prince sees her she's all grody and dirty and dressed in torn, smudged clothes. Poor Cinders," Nudge sighed.

"Much to the surprise of the two stepsisters, the Prince asked Cinderella to marry him, and they lived happily together for the rest of their lives. The End." Nudge, Angel and I clapped for Max, who grinned at us. "I always thought this was an awful version of Cinderella," she confided to me in a whisper. I nodded sagely in reply, and she grinned at me, her beautiful face lighting up.

"Next story!" Angel announced, leaning down to flip the page for Max. "Beauty and The Beast!"

Max stuck her tongue out at Ange, but didn't say anything. Instead, she continued on to the next story without complaint. Angel smiled sweetly at her in return, and Nudge giggled. "Beauty and The Beast," Max began. "Once there was a young girl so pretty that she was called 'Beauty.' Her father came to her one day with a very heavy heart. He told her that an ugly beast had dragged him to his dark castle and only freed him on the condition that he sent Beauty there in his place." Max paused suddenly, a frown creasing her forehead. "What the heck? What happened to the part where he picked the rose for her? How did the Beast even _know _about Beauty?" she demanded.

I shrugged. "It's the condensed version," was my suggestion. Max raised an eyebrow at me, and continued reading. Nudge and I slapped high fives as Max looked back down at the book.

"When Beauty arrived at the castle she was terrified by the Beast, but soon realized that he was kind. Each evening the Beast would ask her to marry him but she always refused."

"That's not very nice of her the Beast is feeding her and dancing with her and letting her live in his fnicking castle! And she won't even marry him or anything! That's what I call selfish," Nudge huffed, crossing her arms.

"Maybe she doesn't want to get tied down," I explained softly. "A lot of girls think if they get married or even get a boyfriend they won't have as much freedom. That's not always true." My traitor eyes slid over to Max's face, which was slightly pinker than before around her cheeks.

"Continuing with the story!" Max tossed her hair over her shoulder. "The one day Beauty heard that her father was sick. The Beast loved her so much that he let her return home. Beauty's father soon recovered, but one night she had a dream that the Beast was dying. She immediately went back to the castle. Weeping at the Beast's side, she declared her love for him." Max broke off, looking distastefully at the picture of Beauty on the page. "She's a little late," Max commented.

"It's never too late to say 'I love you'," I mused, wondering where all this mush was coming from. Was Angel putting all the gush coming out of my mouth into my mind for me to say?

_I'm not Fang, I swear. You're thinking of it by yourself. It's actually kind of cute,_ Angel told me.

_Ange! Get out of my head!_

_ Fine, jeez._

_ Just listen to the story Angel._

"The moment Beauty spoke these words, the castle lit up and in the place of the Beast knelt a young Prince. He explained that he had been turned into a beast by a wicked fairy and that only the love of a beautiful girl would save him." Max broke off, looking up indignantly from the book. "Why a _beautiful _girl? Why wouldn't a pretty girl, or just cute, or even a plain or ugly girl work just as fine? It's still love, right? Why does she have to be beautiful?" Max's eyes told that she wasn't talking only about the story, but I wasn't sure exactly what else she _did _mean. "I bet she has to have red hair too," she muttered under her breath.

"No she doesn't-" I tried to say, but Max cut in.

"Look! Even the girl in the picture has red hair!" she pointed, and I was forced to admit that Max was right.

"Okay Max, get on with it! We know that the picture of Beauty has red hair, big deal! Just finish the story already!" Nudge shifted impatiently beneath her blankets. Max looked like she was about to say something, but Nudge glared a Mini-Max glare at her. Max had a look in her chocolate brown eyes that made me think she was conversing with Angel, too.

"Angel! That's not true. Don't make up his mind for him!" Max protested aloud. Angel frowned at her, but didn't say anything in return. "Let me finish the fnicking story. So Beauty married her Prince and they both lived happily ever after. The End. Finally. Ugh, I hate this story," Max muttered. Angel frowned, and Nudge shook her head at her, making sure Max didn't see.

"Next story?" I asked, trying to get things moving again. Max glared at me, and I wondered why. I hadn't done anything wrong. Yet.

"Please Max? Give it a try," Angel begged, her blue eyes troubled. Max refused to look at her, and I got the feeling that Angel wasn't talking about reading the next story.

"It's not right, Ange. Next story. Snow White, yippee. There was once a young Princess called Snow White. Her stepmother, the Queen, was very jealous of her. One day the Queen gazed at her reflection, asking, _'Mirror, mirror, on the wall, Who is the fairest of them all?'_ When the mirror answered that it was Snow White, the Queen ordered her huntsman to kill the girl. Snow White fled into the forest and came upon a little house. Inside there were seven little chairs, seven little plates, and seven little beds. It was the home of the seven dwarfs and hearing her sad story, they asked her to stay." Max paused, not looking at me, but instead glancing up at Nudge. "Hmm, the seven chairs, seven plates, and seven beds belonged to the _seven dwarfs_! Who woulda thunk?" Nudge looked at her, her mocha eyes silently pleading with Max's chocolate ones. Was there some sort of Girl War going on that I wasn't aware of? "No Nudge. Anyway, when the Queen learned where Snow White was hiding, she set out dressed as an old woman and tricked Snow White into eating a poisoned apple. The dwarfs returned from work to find Snow White lying on the ground. They loved her so much that they made her a glass coffin for all to see her beauty." Max broke off again to add in yet another famous Max-comment. "Eww, that's kind of gnarly. Wouldn't she decay or something? Didn't they think about that?" she asked no one in particular. Nobody answered, and she frowned before continuing the story without further interruption. "One day a Prince came riding by and fell in love with Snow White. As he lifted her coffin, she awoke. He took her back to his kingdom to marry her and they lived together in great happiness. The End."

"He married her just because she was beautiful?" I asked incredulously. That just didn't seem right. "What if she was a vain little idiot, and he married her without a second thought just because she was kinda pretty?" Angel smiled at me over Max's head.

"Well, princess stories don't really make sense a lot of the times, but they're nice to think about," she mused happily, leaning back into her pillow and gazing up at her star-covered ceiling.

"I know, right? I don't know why I'm even reading them! Oh yeah. _Now _I remember," Max said pointedly. Nudge and Angel pretended not to notice, and I had to smile. "What's so funny, Fang?" Do you want to read the next story?" Max demanded. I shrugged.

"Sure. That'd be okay," I agreed. Max looked slightly startled, like she hadn't thought I would actually say yes. "Give me the book." She handed me the large pink book, our fingers touching for a moment. Max didn't meet my eyes, instead leaning back in her bean bag and closing hers. "The Princess and The Frog," I began in a soothing voice. "One evening a young Princess was playing with her beautiful golden ball when it fell into a deep lake." I broke off to snicker at the wording. Pervert City here!

"Eww, Fang!" Nudge shrieked, throwing a pillow at my head. I ducked easily, but was smacked in the forehead by Angel's projectile, a vibrant teal elephant. The girls slapped high fives over Max's head, who was giggling uncontrollably at the expression on my face.

"What? I was just reading what the book said!" I protested, dodging more pillows and stuffed animals. Max got up and threw her fnicking bean bag at my head, which I nimbly avoided, glaring at her in the process. "What was that for?" I demanded.

"Poisoning the girls' young minds! I don't want them to grow up and be like female Iggys!" she retorted. I paused, weighing this statement.

"Well, that would be bad," I admitted. She smirked at me. "On with the story! Golden ball in a deep lake…" I snickered again, but stopped at Max's Killer Max Glare. "Ahem. 'I'd give all my jewels, my fine clothes,-everything I own- to have my precious ball back,' she wept'." My lips quirked up in a mischievous smile, but I didn't comment. "On hearing this, a large frog appeared and promised to find the ball if the Princess agreed to take him home, let him eat from her plate, and sleep upon her bed. The Princess was repelled by the creature but gave her promise. Once the frog had found the ball, the Princess was overjoyed and ran off toward the castle thinking no more about the frog. The next evening while the Princess was eating her supper, the frog knocked at her castle door reminding her of her promise. When the King heard about their meeting at the lake, he told his daughter, 'A promise must be kept. Let your visitor in.' The frog sat next to the Princess who could not bring herself to eat anything but watched in disgust as he ate all he could. And that night the frog slept on her pillow while the Princess cried herself to sleep." I paused for breath, and Max took the opportunity to comment again.

"What a wuss. All the frog did was eat and sleep, and she's crying her eyes out!" Max shook her head.

"She's a _princess _though. The poor girl isn't used to having slimy amphibians on her table and in her bed!" Nudge argued. Max shrugged, unconvinced. "Keep reading Fang," Nudge sighed.

"In the morning, the Princess awoke to find a handsome Prince standing at the foot of her bed. He told her how a wicked fairy had changed him into a frog. Now that the Princess had broken the spell, the Prince asked her to marry him and the next day they left for his kingdom where they lived happily for many years. The End," I finished with a flourish. "Now I've used up all my words for today. Max has to read again," I announced, tossing the book and her bean bag back at the pouting girl.

"But I like listening to you read!" Max protested, sitting back down on her bean bag. "It's more fun than reading it myself."

"I'm so sorry Max, but you have to read Sleeping Beauty. Then it's bedtime for you guys," I decided. Nudge and Angel groaned. Max flipped the book to the last story, resigning herself to reading it.

"A king and Queen were once so overjoyed at the birth of their beautiful daughter that they arranged a grand party. While some good fairies were offering their gifts a wicked fairy burst in and put a curse on the baby Princess, saying that on her fifteenth birthday she would fall into an everlasting sleep." Max stopped, frowning.

"That's not how I remember the story," I remarked. The girls all nodded, staring at the page with the story as if it would give them answers. "Keep going, Max." Surprisingly, she obeyed.

"On the day of her fifteenth birthday the Princess came upon a secret room. Inside was the wicked fairy disguised as an old woman at a spinning wheel. The Princess pricked her finger on the spindle and fell lifeless to the floor. A hundred years passed and then one day a handsome young Prince rode by. He had heard of the wicked curse and drew his sword to cut back the thorns that surrounded the Princess' castle. He searched the castle and at last found the room where the beautiful princess lay." Max paused again, glaring at the page. "Why do all the fnicking princesses have to be beautiful?" she yelled with surprising vehemence. "It's getting on my nerves!"

"It's a cliché fairytale thing," Nudge explained. "There's tons of books where the princesses are plain though. You can read one of those tomorrow!" she added brightly. Max grimaced at her, but didn't say anything.

"The moment the Prince kissed her, the curse was broken and the Princess awoke. They immediately fell in love. Soon everyone was celebrating the marriage of the Prince and Princess who had a long and happy life together. The End." Max slammed the book shut with a happy smile. "Finally!"

"I'm sensing a recurring theme here. Beautiful princess in some sort of trouble, handsome prince saves her, they get married the minute they meet each other, and are incredibly happy." Angel nodded at my words.

"That's how the stories go!" she confirmed dreamily, sinking into her pillows again. Nudge yawned, snuggling into her blankets also. Max rose from her beanbag, stroking the curls back from Angel's forehead. I stood up also, leaning over the adorable little girl that was Angel.

"G'night Max. G'night Fang. I love you guys," she yawned at us, blinking sleepily. Max leaned down, a tender look on her usually tough face.

"I love you too Ange. Good night," she whispered, kissing Angel's forehead softly. My heart panged, and for a moment I wished I was Angel, comfortably in bed, with Max kissing my forehead and telling me she loved me. Max turned towards the nightstand, clicking the lamp off and moving towards Nudge's bed. "Good night Nudge, I love you," I heard Max say.

"Night, Angel," I whispered to the seven-year-old, stroking her forehead. She smiled sleepily at me.

"Do me a favor, Fang," she whispered back. I nodded in reply. "Tell Max you love her for me. G'night Fangles, I love you," she finished, turning on her side and pulling the blankets over her head before I could say anything to her.

Max was waiting for me at their door now. I turned to Nudge and bent over her, dusting her cheek with a light kiss. "Night, Nudgekins," I told her, ruffling her hair. Nudge smiled at the nickname, stretching up to kiss my cheek.

"Good night Fang. And good luck with Max," she whispered. I blushed, hoping desperately that no one saw in the darkness. I willed the blush to disappear as I grinned at Nudge. She closed her eyes and was immediately asleep. Dang, that girl was good. I walked out the door where Max was still waiting, closing the door behind us. We walked silently down the hallway, my head a couple inches over Max's. When we reached her door, she turned and looked at me, our comfortable silence turning slightly awkward.

"Thanks for reading, Max. You know that the girls enjoy it," I found myself saying. Max nodded, grinning as she met my gaze.

"Yeah, I know. It's that dang Beauty and the Beast that irritates me every time," she whispered, looking down at her feet again.

"Why?"

"Reasons," she hedged, obviously not wanting to discuss it. "But luckily The Princess and the Frog always cheers me up again. Golden ball," Max snickered happily.

"Yeah…" I wanted to say more, but as always, the words were getting stuck in my throat. Dang it!

"So, g'night Fang," Max shifted awkwardly. She half-turned, getting ready to open her door and disappear into her room. Just go Fang!

"Umm, Max?" I asked. She turned around, her chocolate brown eyes glittering with, hope? I didn't know what to say, the sparkle of her eyes was distracting me.

"Fang?" she asked. Without a word, I touched my lips gently against her cheek, right next to her dropped-open-in-surprise mouth. She stared at me in confusion.

"Good night Max," I told her gently, turning and walking down the hallway towards my room. I knew she was still standing in the hallway, watching me walk away, probably holding a hand to her face. I resisted the urge to run back down the hallway and kiss her full on the lips, instead turning into my room and quietly shutting the door. There was no way I would get any sleep tonight.

**Max's POV**

What the heck was that? My thoughts were completely mixed up now, even worse than before. Emotions flew in a torrent, like a cyclone racing through my mind. I stared down the hallway as Fang casually walked away back into his room, heard the quiet click as his door shut behind him. Everything looked normal. But it definitely wasn't.

_You don't need to know that now. Fang will tell you later._

Yeah right, of course I needed to know now! I finally went into my room, flopping on the bed as my thoughts whirled around in a disorganized mess. What was up with Fang? What was up with me?

I needed to know.

I resolved that I would find out in the morning, and still tracing the burning spot where Fang's lips had touched my face with a stray finger, I tried to fall asleep.

'Tried' being the key word.

**Nudge's POV**

As soon as the door shut behind Fang, Angel and I bolted upright in our beds, abandoning our guise of being asleep. I looked at her excitedly.

"ZOMG Angel that was perfect! Did you see how they were acting?" I asked my little sister with a giggle. She nodded, smiling happily.

"I have a plan for tomorrow, too!" Angel squealed quietly, trying not to wake Gazzy in the next room.

"Really?" I asked, bouncing up and down in my bed. It was hard to contain my excitement. "What is it? Tell me!"

Angel explained her plan carefully, me nodding along the entire time. "That's genius!" I declared as she finished.

Angel grinned. "Exactly! It has to work! Now Max will be able to see how perfect she and Fang would be as a couple!" Suddenly she frowned, her face clouding over. "Tonight when I was trying to mind-speak with her though, she wouldn't even accept the fact that Fang's in love with her. She thought it was totally ridiculous, even though it's completely obvious the feeling is mutual."

I nodded sagely. "Sometimes I wonder what Max's logic is," I confided in Angel. "She seems so drawn in at times, then a few minutes later she's completely out of her shell! It's confusing."

"That's just Max. Only Fang seems to understand that, and not even he does sometimes. And the thing with her denying stuff that's obviously true, that's just her not wanting to get hurt," Angel realized. "We kind of have to let her figure it out by herself."

I yawned, falling back on my pillows. "We can help her figure it out by herself," I concluded stubbornly. "Tomorrow. Good night Ange." I turned over, hearing Angel do the same.

"Night, Nudge," she replied sleepily.

And silence reigned.

**Whew that was long. I just wanted to get this fic up today so I could say MERRY CHRISTMAS to all you Christmas-celebraters! XD Review please!**

**~TMI~**


	2. Things That Go FAX in the Night

**Hi peeps! Technically, I should be writing Six Mutants and a Shock Pen, but I **_**really **_**don't feel like it. I have no inspiration for it anyway; it just seemed like a cool idea at the time. On the other hand, I **_**really **_**don't want to discontinue it. =( Dilemma! SO yeah, while I'm figuring out my troubles on THAT story, here's an update for Storytime. **

**BTW, This has a strong possibility of turning into a three-shot. (I hate ending stories.)**

**AND MY LAST NOTE: My thinking cap is STILL being de-liced. =( Therefore, I don't have it on right now, and sadly, I think I'm becoming dependent on it to feel that I'm writing my best. T_T**

**Angel's POV**

_Fang, won't you please tell her already? I asked him, wondering why Fang was so apprehensive. _

_ She's just going to bite my head off, he complained, his dark eyes troubled. Fang paced agitatedly around. I watched him pace for awhile, then spoke up again._

_ You never know for sure unless you try, I reminded him. Now shoo, go tell her. Fang nodded resolutely and marched out the marshmallow door._

_ Wait, marshmallow door?_

I opened my eyes, staring up at the starry ceiling. Unfortunately, none of the doors in our house are made of marshmallow, so I knew at that point that it was a dream. Too bad. Fang had finally decided to go tell Max he loved her! Sigh. However, it didn't matter anyways, since after today Max would be forced to admit her feelings too.

I rolled over in bed, turning my head to look at Nudge. She was still curled in her blankets, and as I watched she rolled over, sighing happily in her sleep. Her eyes were still tightly shut, and she unconsciously brushed a hand over her dark curls. _Nudge! _I called to her. Instantly, I was in her dream, standing next to her.

_Oh, hey Ange. Wassup? Nudge asked, watching the snowmen tap dancing in front of her. Iggy cartwheeled by, singing about lemon drops, but she hardly spared him a glance._

_ Umm, Nudge? This is what you dream about? I looked around the dream, wondering what the heck Nudge was taking to give her such loopy ideas. Have you been overdosing on cold medicine again? I asked sternly. She gazed at me innocently._

_ Of course not! What makes you think that? Nudge demanded, tossing her curls. I pointed at the dancing snowmen, the cartwheeling Iggy, the fairies that had landed in her hair, and most of all, Lady GaGa singing Bad Romance while flying a purple dragon around in the sky. Well, maybe I did take a little too much… Nudge admitted. I rolled my eyes, then grabbed her arm._

_ C'mon Nudge, you have to wake up now, I told her. She pouted, then realized I was right. As soon as she did, the dream started fading._

_ Bye Iggy! Nudge called, waving to him. He stopped cartheeling long enough to wave, then bumped into Lady GaGa and fell into a volcano. Ouch. Nudge winced, and _opened her eyes.

"That's gotta hurt," she yawned, sitting up. I shook my head, clearing it.

"That's a cool power," I remarked, touching my forehead. "I didn't know that I could enter dreams like that."

"Maybe we can work that into our plan somehow!" Nudge suggested, grinning brightly as she threw her covers off. I felt a grin form on my face at the idea.

"Great! Maybe we can make Max take a nap, and then make her dream about Fang or something?" I offered. Nudge nodded, throwing the covers off and bounding out of bed. I looked at the clock on our nightstand as I pushed the blankets off my legs. It was only 8:30. That gave us plenty of time to make our little project.

I followed Nudge to our closet, where she was getting changed out of her pajamas. She tugged on black skinny jeans, a green tank top, and a white hoody with slits for her wings. While she pulled on her socks I picked out my own outfit. Shrugging off my nightgown, I took a pair of jeans out of a drawer, stepping into them quickly. They were old and worn, my oldest jeans that were still presentable. I grabbed a long sleeve pink t-shirt out of the closet and pulled it on, along with a brown sweatshirt. Carefully, I helped Nudge pull her wings out of her hoody, and she did the same for me, taking each wing gently by the biggest bone and pulling them through the slits in my jacket. I flexed my wings, making sure none of the feathers were caught on the sides of the slits. Nudge tugged a comb through her tangled curls, trying to get them to lie flat on her head. While she struggled with her hair, I pulled mine into a ponytail and got up. She rolled her eyes, abandoning all hopes of brushing out the snarls. "Let's go get Fang now," I suggested, watching Nudge bundle her hair into a messy ponytail.

"Kay, just a second Ange." Nudge hurried over to her bed again, leaning down to pick something up off the floor. "We need this," she reminded me with a devious grin.

"Of course! How could I forget?" I smacked a hand against my forehead, giggling as I thought about our plan. "Now let's go wake Fangles up!" We skipped out of our room, toting along the secret weapon as we hurried down the hallway to Fang's room. When we reached the black door, Nudge knocked on it, giggling happily.

"Come in," Fang's voice rang from inside, sounding kind of scratchy. Frowning slightly, we opened the door and entered the world of black that Fang inhabits.

**Fang's POV**

As I suspected, I didn't get much sleep. I had lain in bed for hours, staring up at the ceiling, the only white thing in my room, my eyes drawn to it like a moth to light. How would Max react in the morning? I had no idea. She was completely unpredictable sometimes, which was actually one of my favorite things about her. I had eventually sat up, leaning back against the headboard of my bed, staring forward into the darkness. Feeling too warm, I peeled off my t-shirt, now just in my black pajama pants as I sat on my bed. I entertained myself by letting my raptor vision fade in and out of focus, alternately seeing every outline of my junk and seeing nothing at all but black. It was kind of comforting, in an odd way.

What was Max doing, just a room away? Iggy was lying in the room between us, probably snoring his head off. He and Gazzy used to be roommates, but finally the little trooper complained about the noise and moved out into the spare room.

I shook my head, trying to clear it of all its random thoughts. Banging my head against the wall helped for awhile, but then Gazzy walked into my room, rubbing his eyes sleepily. I froze mid head-bang, and he stopped and stared at me, yawning. "Fang?" he asked, sleep heavy in his voice.

"Yeah Gaz?"

"Why is your bed in the bathroom?" Gazzy yawned again, still rubbing his eyes. I had to grin; Gazzy was adorable when he was tired, although we would never tell him that. He would be highly insulted.

"This isn't the bathroom, Gazzy. This is my room," I explained, getting up from my bed. He nodded, yawning again.

"So why isn't the toilet here again?" he asked, letting his hands dangle by his sides as he squinted at me. I sighed to stifle a laugh and walked over to him. He watched with his head cocked as I took his shoulders and helped him through the hallway, leading him to the bathroom.

"Here's the bathroom, Gaz," I told him, turning on the light. He nodded, and walked in, shutting the door behind him. I leaned against the wall, waiting for him to come out again so I could help him back to bed. I stared at the picture hanging on the wall across from me. It depicted Gazzy, Nudge and Angel flying high above a deserted playground, playing air-tag, while Max and I flew high above, watching them laugh with smiles on our faces. For a blind guy, Iggy was an amazing photographer. He would listen to try to hear where we were, then point and shoot. For his random tactics, the results he got were incredible. My eyes focused on Max and me, smiling down at the younger flock from higher up in the sky. What would Max do to me for kissing her cheek? I didn't know, and wasn't sure I wanted to. Lost as I was in my reveries, I almost didn't hear the toilet flush and the sink go on. However, I did hear the handle click open, and was ready and aware when Gazzy fell forward, completely asleep. I lunged forward and caught him before his head smashed against the floor, grunting slightly as his it knocked hard against my collarbone instead. "Gaz?" I whispered, hoping he would wake up.

"Save some plutonium for me, Iggy," he whispered back, blue eyes firmly closed. I sighed, deciding that I would have to carry him back to his bed. Standing up, I carried him bridal-style back to his room. The only problem was, the door was closed. I stood in front of the shut door, nudging it with my foot, hoping it would open. The door stayed firmly shut. I was about to put Gazzy down and open it myself when Max's door opened and she walked out, wearing pajama bottoms and a tank top. Her hair was tousled and hanging around her face, but it was still as beautiful as ever. She stopped when she saw me carrying Gazzy, standing in front of his room. Her eyes flickered to my bare chest, and back up to my face. She rubbed her eyes and looked at me again, not processing the scene.

"Umm, hi Max. Could you open Gaz's door for me?" I asked, surprised that my voice was so smooth. My heart was pounding like a sledgehammer in my chest, but I tried to ignore it. Max rubbed her eyes yet again and looked at me, not saying anything. "Max?" I asked again. She blinked slowly, then walked over and turned the doorknob, opening Gazzy's door wide open. "Thanks," I told her, hefting Gazzy into a better position. He nestled his head against my chest, smiling in his sleep. Gazzy was just too cute sometimes.

I was about to walk in when Max stopped me, holding me back with a hand on my shoulder. I tried not to hyperventilate at her touch on my bare skin. "What happened to Gaz anyway?" she asked, her voice hushed so not to wake the others.

"He walked into my room a few minutes ago and asked me why I was sleeping in the bathroom. I explained that I was in my room, and helped him to the bathroom. He did his business and washed his hands, then completely conked out while he was opening the door." Max smiled as I spoke, reaching out a hand to stroke Gazzy's soft blond hair back from his forehead. "I carried him back to his room, and discovered the door was shut. I was about to put him down and open it when you came out of your room and helped me," I explained. Max nodded, her gaze fixed on Gazzy's peaceful face. I turned reluctantly to put Gazzy back in his bed. Max followed me into his room, watching as I laid him back down on the mattress. As soon as he hit the top, he curled his fists around his blankets and pulled them around him. Max smiled at him again, bending down to kiss his cheek. We walked quietly back out of his bedroom, closing the door softly behind us.

"I had to go to the bathroom too," Max told me, looking up into my eyes. "I couldn't sleep."

I grinned wryly. "You too? I felt like I'd chugged a few gallons of caffeine." Max looked down at her socked feet, suddenly shy.

"Yeah. Me too," she whispered, staring at her socks like they held the secret to life. Gently, not believing I actually had the guts to do so, I reached out a hand and pulled her chin up so she was looking back in my eyes.

"Can I ask why?" My tone was soft as I looked into her beautiful chocolate eyes. She blinked, not moving.

"Because of you." Max sounded troubled, and while my heart was leaping for joy, my brain started doubting.

"You say that like it's a bad thing," I teased her gently. She looked directly in my eyes, and I could see she was close to crying. Max was about to cry over _me?_

"It _is_," she whispered, her voice cracking. She suddenly burst out into quiet sobs, falling forward into my arms. I started freaking out at that point, my mind going on overload. Mutely, I hugged her as she cried, stroking her hair and between her wings to calm her down. She hugged me back as tears flowed freely out of her eyes.

Talk about mixed signals here.

Finally, the tears stopped, and she leaned heavily against me, her head resting on my bare chest. I kept rubbing her back, and her breathing slowed into a deep, even pattern. "Max?" I asked softly as I breathed in the addictive scent of her hair. She didn't reply. "Max?" Finally, I managed to lift Max's head up off my chest without letting go of her, and found out that she was sound asleep. I sighed, resigning myself to carrying her back to her bed too. I gathered her up in my arms, carrying her bridal style like I had with Gazzy. The only difference was that Max was heavier than Gaz, and that I had an insane crush on her. Imagine carrying your sleeping secret love through a house where everyone else is asleep.

It's very stressful.

I got back to her room, and thankfully, her door was open. I nudged it open wider with my foot, carrying her back towards her bed. I didn't need my raptor vision to know where I was going, since I had all the flock's rooms mapped out in my head. Laying Max gently down on her bed, I watched as she stretched out, rubbing her face into the pillow. Moonlight coming through the window sparkled on her hair, strewn around on the pillow. Max was so beautiful, it was completely unfair. "Sweet dreams," I whispered, stroking a strand of hair off her peaceful face. She shifted, curling into her blankets and shifting the comforter up to her chin. I watched her breathe evenly in and out, unable to tear my eyes away from her. I know it was kind of creeper-ish, but she was just so… Max. It was hard for me to walk back to my room, but I did anyway, closing Max's door behind me.

When I hit my bed again, I felt a little calmer. I could still imagine Max in my arms, her head tucked under my chin and my nose buried in her hair. It was a soothing picture to think about, and as I replayed the feeling over in over in my mind, I finally dropped off to sleep.

I was woken up what seemed like just minutes later by a soft tapping on the door. "Come in," I called out, grimacing at the weird tone my voice had. I sat up, throwing the blankets off my legs and looking towards the door expectantly. Angel and Nudge walked in, Nudge carrying the storybook Max had read them last night.

_Max… Last night…_

Memories of the night before flooded my mind, how Gazzy stumbled into my room, positive it was the bathroom, how Max had walked out and helped me tuck him back into bed, the troubled way Max had looked at me, like she was in a total mess, the sweet scent of her hair lingering just below me, tempting me, and most of all, carrying her back into her room, laying her back in her bed and just gazing at the beauty that was Max, watching as she slept.

Good times, gooood times.

"Hey Fang, are you okay? You look kinda tired," Nudge chirped, bounding over and sitting next to me on my bed. Angel nodded, following Nudge and sitting down next to her. I smiled quickly at them, shrugging.

"I just had trouble sleeping," I replied, my mind buzzing. Nudge and Angel exchanged excited glances.

"Thinking about _Max? Hmmm?" _Nudge asked, wiggling her eyebrows. Angel giggled, watching interestedly as my traitor face flushed the tiniest bit.

"That's for me to know and Angel not to snoop about in my thoughts," I shot back, quickly cooling my face back to its normal complexion. Nudge grinned, before turning all business. She picked up the Pink Princess Stencil Book, showing it to me.

"You see this, Fang?" she asked seriously. I nodded.

"That's the princess book you forced Max to read you last night," I remarked, studying the cover. Cinderella fled from the ball, while her fairy godmother floated happily nearby. Nudge snorted at my words.

"Oh please, we all know she secretly loves to read princess stories to us," Nudge retorted. Angel giggled as I nodded amiably.

"That's true." I waited for Nudge to continue.

"So as I was saying, this is not only a princess book, but a princess _stencil _book! So Ange and I were thinking, you could draw pictures using the stencils, personalize them with drawings of you and Max in each part, and write a short story about you two!" she finished excitedly, her eyes lit up with the maniacal energy that always filled Nudge. I widened my eyes as she explained her plan.

"Max will think I'm a lovesick idiot," I pointed out. "She won't like that mush!"

"But you _are _a lovesick idiot!" Angel argued, smiling persuasively at me. "So why don't you express your feelings so you can get Max and I won't be plagued with both of your gross, mushy thoughts about each other!"

"Angel, you aren't supposed to- wait a sec." I stopped, realizing what Angel had just told me. "Max has gross, mushy thoughts about me?" Angel grinned evilly, and Nudge giggled at the expression on my face.

"Tons," Angel replied, mischief dancing in her eyes. "But her fantasies are always cut short before they get too steamy." Nudge oohed, and I just sat there like a metaphoric deer in the headlights, my mouth gaping open at this new tidbit of information. "Max is all stupid about romance; she thinks it will get awkward if you guys break up and still have to see each other everyday and act normally," Angel confided sadly. Nudge snorted.

"But they _won't _break up!" Nudge protested. "Fang, you guys are perfect _soul mates! _ You just have to convince Max that her fears are irrational!"

"I'll try, Nudge. Don't think that I don't want her," I told Nudge slowly, leaning back on my bed and staring up at the ceiling. Silence reigned in the room, Angel and Nudge obviously touched by my last statement.

"Well then we're going to help you!" Angel chirped suddenly, her mood turning bright again. "Nudge and I have our plan, all you have to do is write a princess story that is actually talking about you and Max, and illustrate it! It's a good try at getting her to come out of her shell!"

"Angel's right," Nudge agreed, backing her up. "And besides, it's not like you have a better plan." I shrugged, knowing that she was speaking the truth. "So will you please try it? Pleeeease?"

Angel and Nudge turned their Bambi eyes on me, and I was immediately hooked. "Fine," I told them, watching as they squealed in delight.

"Perfect! Thank you thank you thank you Fang!" Nudge threw her arms around my neck, and I lightly hugged her back. "We'll go get the paper and coloring stuff, be right back!" Nudge called, running out the door after Angel. I stood up, rushing to the door.

"I'm going to get breakfast first!" I warned them. "There's no way I'm working before I get food." Nudge and Angel giggled from inside their room.

"Okay!" they called back in unison. I heard them start chattering excitedly about the plan, and had to smile. They were just too cute, wanting to help me get Max to stop being so stubborn and admit her feelings. I decided not to bother with throwing on a shirt, and instead walked down the staircase in just my pajama pants, happily inhaling the scent of Iggy's crepes wafting through the house.

I walked soundlessly into the kitchen, inadvertently sneaking up on Max as she stood with her back to the door, hands on her hips. She was still dressed in the same pajamas from last night, and her hair was pulled into a low ponytail, with long wisps struggling out and framing her face. I was about to say something when Max whirled around, automatically crouching in a fighting position. I looked at her interestedly, wondering what she'd have to say after last night. When Max saw it was just me standing there in the doorway, she relaxed, huffing as she tightened her ponytail. "Fang! Make sounds," she ordered, glaring at me. I grinned brightly at her, loving the way she blinked dazedly, like I had stunned her with my smile's sudden appearance. Lapsing back into my normal neutral expression, I slipped past Max and made my way over to Iggy, standing at the stove with a grin on his face.

"So, nine o' clock in the morning and you already annoyed Max! Good job, Fnick," he congratulated me. I flicked his arm as I grabbed six crepes off the plate next to him, stacking them on my own plate. "Condiments are on the table, O Silent One," Iggy informed me, taking another crepe out of the pan. I nodded, walking over to the table and sitting down next to one of the whipped cream containers. Max was still standing where she had been before, her eyes trained on me, a far-off look on her beautiful face. She didn't move as I picked up the whipped cream bottle and sprayed a mountain of it on my first crepe.

"Max?" I asked, looking up at her. She jumped, glaring at me again.

"What?" she asked, going to get crepes from Iggy. I shrugged, spooning a dollop of Nutella in the middle of my crepe and folding it like a burrito. Whipped cream oozed out the other side as I bit into the sugary goodness. Max rolled her eyes at me, sitting down at the table with her own crepes.

"You were just standing there, spacing out," I explained. She nodded, not meeting my eyes as she grabbed the bowl of sliced bananas and another container of whipped cream. What was up with her?

I finished my crepes in my natural silence, although Max was unusually quiet while she inhaled her breakfast. "Thanks Igs," she called to the chef as she set her plate in the sink. "They were delicious!"

"Aren't they always?" Iggy returned, pouring more batter in his pan. Max snorted as she disappeared out of the kitchen. I heard her footsteps on the stairs fade away as she returned upstairs. Iggy abruptly whirled around to face me. "So," he started, a wicked grin forming on his face. "Are you going to take Nudge and Angel's advice?" I choked on my last bite of crepe, spitting whipped cream onto my plate in surprise.

"What?" I coughed, staring at him incredulously. He crossed his arms over his chest, tsking impatiently before turning back to his crepes.

"It's more than slightly obvious you both dig each other, Fnick," he called to me from the stove. I scowled, shoveling more crepe into my mouth. "You should just start dating before I lose my patience and slam your heads together." I snorted at him, tearing a savage bite out of my last crepe.

"Iggy, if you haven't noticed yet, Max is more jumpy about emotions than even _me. _That's not good," I pointed out. He flicked his spoon at me as he splattered more batter in the pan.

"She'll get over it eventually," he remarked confidently. "But first you need to show her that you aren't afraid to show _your _emotions."

"But I _am _afraid to show my emotions!" I groaned, putting my head in my hands. Iggy tsked again, wiping his hands off on a towel and coming over to the table.

"Fang. If you tell Max you love her, and she freaks out, I'll make you waffles for a week," Iggy promised solemnly. "If you tell Max you love her, and she kisses you, then I have rights to say 'I told you so!' forever."

"That doesn't sound like a very good choice," I observed. "Either Max hates me and I get waffles, or Max loves me and I get bothered by you."

"But still!" Iggy persuaded me. I laughed shortly, standing up and taking my plate to the sink.

"I'm going to go confer with Ange and Nudge. Thanks for breakfast Igs, you're amazing," I called over my shoulder as I exited the kitchen. Iggy nodded casually.

"I know I am," he replied immediately. I rolled my eyes as I made my way up the stairs. Gazzy passed me on the way down, his hair spiked up and rubbing the sleep out of his eyes.

"Iggy made crepes," I informed him. Gazzy yelled happily, immediately waking up and running the rest of the way down the stairs. I smiled, making my way back to my room. Time to start the plan, I guess.

**Max's POV**

I opened my eyes , staring up at the ceiling as I lay tangled in my blankets. I had had a really weird dream with Fang carrying Gazzy to the bathroom in the middle of the night. We had put Gazzy back to bed and I was talking with Fang when he suddenly implied that he was still hyped up from when he kissed my cheek earlier. It had gotten too emotional for me, and I ended up starting to cry. Fang had just hugged me, letting me revel in the strength of his arms, breathing in his unique Fang-scent. I had just felt so comfortable and- and safe, snuggled into his chest like that, that I kind of fell into a sort of trance. I had been vaguely aware of being picked up, and carried back to my room, laid back in my bed. A familiar hand had stroked my hair, and I fell deeper into sleep.

I remembered the dream, smiling happily. It was nice to at least have dreams like that with Fang in them if I couldn't deal with those kinds of scenarios in real life. I suddenly sat bolt upright in bed as I realized what I was thinking. Fang was just like a brother, a best friend. I didn't love him like _that._

Did I?

I wasn't sure anymore, but I was sure that I didn't want to keep thinking those thoughts. It was impossible that a gorgeous, completely perfect guy like Fang would like plain, stubborn Maximum Ride.

Gorgeous? Perfect? Where were these adjectives coming from?

I groaned again, finally jumping out of bed. It would be easier not to think about these weird new thoughts if I was occupied.

_They're not new, Max. You've had them for awhile, since before Virginia. You've had them since before Fang got his chest shredded by Ari._

_SHUT UP! _I yelled in my mind, storming down the stairs. The Voice could be so annoying. Especially when it was right.

I was greeted by the amazing smell of Iggy's special crepes, and was immediately soothed by the delicious scent pervading every corner of the kitchen. "Morning, Max," he murmured from his place at the stove, his blind eyes trained on the cooking crepe in front of him like he could see the batter bubbling.

"Good morning, Igs. It's nice to see that you're already prepared for us," I replied, watching as he took the crepe out of the pan and laid it on a tall stack of finished ones. He smirked as he poured more batter into the pan.

"I figure it's good to get a head start," he remarked. "You should always be prepared for an unexpected influx of hunger." I scowled, thinking about Iggy's twisted implications.

"You're so perverted, Igs," I scolded him. His grin grew wider as he understood what I meant.

"I know. It's one of my numerous charms." Iggy ran a hand through his short hair, smiling coyly at the spoon in his hand. I laughed, watching his display. We fell into a comfortable silence as I stood, watching Iggy make more and more crepes for the flock. Suddenly, the hair on the back of my neck prickled, and I whirled around to face none other than Mr Silent himself, Fnick Ride.

"Fang! Make sound," I complained, putting my hands on my hips in exasperation. He _always _did this to me. Always!

It was then when I noticed what he was wearing.

Strangely, Fang was clad in the exact same outfit he had been wearing in my dream, which wasn't very much. He wore a pair of pure black pajama bottoms, and no shirt covering his six-pack chest. His long hair was tousled, strands of it falling down over his dark eyes as he looked at me. I was trying hard to get my mouth to work again, to say something to break the silence as I tried to tear my eyes off his face. Suddenly, he grinned an all-out smile at me, white teeth flashing like a light, dazing me further as I numbly enjoyed the sight of his special smile. Abruptly, his face faded back into its normal expression, no emotion visible on it as he sidled past me and walked over to Iggy. My eyes were drawn to his beautiful jet black wings, trailing loosely behind him as he traveled between the cupboard and the stove, grabbing a plate to get some of Iggy's crepes. I was frozen in place, unable to do anything but stare at Fang as he obliviously gathered his crepes, his feathers gleaming in the lights and his toned muscles tensing as he moved. Suddenly, I realized he was now sitting down at the table, ready to put a crepe in his mouth, when he noticed I was still standing stock still in the middle of the kitchen, just staring at him. "Max?" he asked through a mouthful of whipped cream and crepe.

_Too cute! _My mind squealed. I mentally scowled at it, finding I was mobile again as I went to get my own crepes. "What?" I snapped at Fang. He cocked his head at me, a puzzled look in his eyes.

"You were just standing there, spacing out," he told me as I grabbed six crepes off Iggy's plate. I grunted noncommittally as I made my way to the table and started eating my food. Breakfast was a very silent affair, since I didn't feel like talking after my embarrassing experience, Iggy was being unusually quiet at the stove, and Fang was… Fang. He never really talked much while he was eating.

I finished as quickly as I could, not looking at Fang again throughout the meal. I was afraid that if I did, I would start gawking at him and his stupid awesome muscles again. "Thanks Igs! It was delicious!" I told Iggy, setting my plate in the sink and fleeing the kitchen.

"Aren't they always?" I heard him say as I ran up the stairs. I slowed to a walk as I passed Angel and Nudge's room.

"Iggy's got crepes downstairs," I informed them, poking my head into the room. Angel was pulling something out of her closet, and Nudge was holding a stack of paper in her hands.

"Okay Max! We'll go eat in a few minutes," Angel told me brightly, a sweet smile spreading on her face. I smiled back at her, heading down the hallway and back into my room. I immediately flopped down on the bed, groaning quietly.

What the heck was going on with me? Why couldn't I stop thinking about Fang? Why had I totally frozen in the kitchen, just 'cause he had his shirt off and his six pack was showing and his gorgeous wings were floating around his back and his hair was-

I groaned louder. I didn't want to think about him anymore. Fang was too confusing right now.

**WHOA! That was an insanely MEGA chapter! It was ELEVEN PAGES on Word! YAY! Feel happy! **

**Review please! And yes, this is now definitely gonna be three-shot.**

**Angel: I'll change the summary in the morning.**

**Good idea Ange. Peace out people!**

**Gazzy: Don't forget to review!**

**Thanks Gaz.**

**~TMI~**


	3. AN

Hey Peoples, I'm so sorry I've been MIA.

REPENT.

It's not entirely my fault. You see, soon after New Years-

Nudge: And that New Years Resolution you made that raised everyone's hopes about you updating quicker-

I said I was sorry! Anyway, my computer totally and utterly DIED. And I had half of the next iPod Screen chappie typed up, all of the next chapter for two other stories, the ideas for School Days and Erasing Lissa, and the beginnings of the next chapter for ATM Wars and Race for the Cure. So yeah, I need to figure out how to raise my laptop from the dead. Then, I will update EVERYTHING in a major spree! But just saying, I procrastinated on writing this A/N 'cause I hate writing them, and there are some stories where this will be the second A/N, which I HATE. I'm so sorry you guys. Please forgive me.

Angel: She's banging her head against the wall.

Gazzy: Poor TMI…. –eats cookies-

HEY! That was MY cookie! –tackles Gazzy-

…

This is Nudge writing. TMI is wrestling with Gazzy over the last cookie now. So yeah, this note was typed on TMI's mother's computer, but the lady won't let her write whole chapters 'cause it takes too long and TMI's little brother-

Angel: She calls him Shortso. XP

-needs to type up his project. So yeah! Byezas!

Angel? Will you do the honors?

Angel: SURE! So sorry about the inconvenience people, TMI is beating herself up about disappointing you guys…. Now to write her signature thingymacdoodle!

~TMI~


	4. You're the Niklaus to My Marina

** This chapter is really long, so if you'd like you can split it into sections at the o.O.o:O:o.O.o thingys. If they show up. I'm finally going to finish this story, so I won't feel guilty about not updating in forever. =D I hope you like the ending to Storytime. Enjoy.**

**Gazzy: And review!**

**Yep, what he said. XD**

**MPOV**

Although I was dreading facing Fang again after my dream and our embarrassing breakfast encounter, my rumbling stomach forced me out of my room at one o' clock to scavenge for food. I cautiously surveyed the hallway before stepping out. Fang was nowhere to be seen. Gazzy was walking out of the bathroom though, and he looked at me curiously. "Max, why are you looking around like that?" Gazzy inquired.

"What do you mean, Gasser?" I asked, trying to appear nonchalant as I edged towards the staircase. Gazzy raised an eyebrow at me, but continued on to his room without another word. Dang it! Even the kids were on to me now.

I descended the stairs without a Fang sighting, and stood outside the kitchen for a moment, listening for sounds of people within. There was silence. Fang wasn't inside. I breathed a sigh of relief, and turned the corner. Call me loony, but I half expected to come face to face with Fang as I rounded the corner. However, he didn't magically appear, and I was left trying to decide whether this was good or bad.

I rummaged around in the cabinets for awhile, wondering what I could eat. My eyes lit on a box of Ritz crackers, so I grabbed the whole thing to take with me back to my room. I gathered a few other provisions, including Oreos and three juice boxes, before heading out of the pantry. I glanced over at the counter, and grabbed a few peaches off of it. Might as well eat something healthy, I figured.

Juggling my prizes, I sprinted up the stairway and back to my room. I swiftly dumped the food on my bed, then raced back and slammed my door shut, locking it for good measure. It wouldn't do if Iggy walked in on me gorging on snacks. He would never let me live it down.

I refused to let myself think I was also locking the door to ensure that I didn't see Fang. Fang was still my best friend. What's a friendly kiss on the cheek between best friends?

But it wasn't so friendly, and both of us knew it. I just didn't want to admit it to myself. Fang wouldn't come out with me and say, "I like you more than a friend," but I knew that if he did, I wouldn't be able to say "Me too." I just couldn't imagine it. Fang was my best friend since I could remember, but now… what? He was still my best friend…

Our relationship was just… slightly altered. I had trouble even thinking what I had just thought, and I just couldn't see myself confessing to anyone that I liked Fang more than a friend. I could barely confess it to myself. Did I like him? Did I really like Fang, my almost _brother?_

I stopped mid-chew, putting my peach down on the Ritz box. _I like Fang, _I thought hesitantly.The thought felt daring, and I could barely think it. _I __might__ like Fang_, I revised hastily. Maybe it was best to take small steps.

"I might like Fang," I whispered to myself. My voice was small in my room, void of anyone but me and my snacks. "I might like Fang."

Baby steps, I coached myself. Just conquer fear, conquer emotion. Maybe then I can understand what I'm feeling right now. Maybe then I can ask Fang what it is that I'm feeling. Maybe.

Just maybe.

FPOV

I was holed up in my room the whole day, being ordered around by two absolute dictators of little girls.

"I heard that," Angel reprimanded me, looking mischievous as she sorted various colored pencils. "Keep working!"

Dang mind readers.

"I heard that too."

I would have to censor my thoughts more carefully in the future. I groaned as I stared at the blank sheet of paper in front of me. Nudge had explained that I should write a fairy tale story that implied how I felt about Max, then she and Angel would help me illustrate it. Tonight, Nudge and Angel would ask Max to read it to them, and she would know how I felt.

Then Max would be free to either accept that, or reject it. If she rejected it, I didn't know what I would do. Maybe I would have to leave the flock or something. It would be unbearable to know that I could love her so much, yet she didn't feel a thing towards me.

I desperately hoped that wouldn't be the case.

"Fang, stop worrying so much and write the freaking story!" Angel snapped. I rolled my eyes at her.

"I'm sorry that I'm scared she'll reject me, Ange. I'll try to close off my feelings next time," I replied sarcastically.

"No, don't do that! Embrace your feelings, Fang!" Nudge declared, throwing her hands up in the air. I raised an eyebrow at her skeptically, and she shrugged, dropping her hands again. "Sorry. I felt that that was necessary."

"Right." I decided to drop that subject immediately, and returned my gaze back to the empty lines on the binder paper mocking me from the surface of my desk. I swear that it was taunting me with its blankness.

"Fang, the binder paper is not mocking you. Please stop procrastinating now," Angel sighed, looking tired as she pronounced the large word with care. I shrugged, and tapped my pencil against the paper. What could I write about? I wasn't secretly an amazing writer or something, and I knew that I wouldn't be writing the next great American novel. I just hoped that Max wouldn't laugh at my attempt to write a story for her. It _was_ kinda pathetic.

The empty binder paper was still watching me with great condescension apparent on its pale blue lines. I glared at it, daring the paper to say a word about my lack of inspiration.

The binder paper stayed silent, choosing to simply continue to smirk at me.

I looked away, trying to find something else besides that evilly blank piece of paper to look at. My gaze landed on the pink stencil book. I reached for it, looking distastefully over the cover again. Cinderella's face was positively beaming with happiness as she tottered down the steps of the palace in one glass high heel. The prince was very happily watching her run away from the top of the steps, her other shoe clutched in his hand. Meanwhile, the fairy godmother floated happily in the background, her skirts flowering out around her and the wand in her hand glowing with golden sparkles. What was with all these happy people?

I refused to look at the binder paper again. I knew it was still gazing malevolently at me. It was just _waiting _to gloat that I couldn't write anything decent.

I flipped the cover of the book open, skimming over the short, badly written fairy tales to get my mind off the binder paper hallucinations I was experiencing. The stories were kinda lame, even by my standards. The author had left out the majority of each tale, simply summarizing the entire story in three or four paragraphs. Talk about laziness.

Suddenly, an idea flickered in my mind. I grasped it, desperate for anything to fill up the binder paper so it would stop damn _smirking _at me. With a triumphant air, I brought my pencil down on the binder paper and drew the outline of the letter _O. _Aha! Who was smirking now, hmm?

…I really do need therapy.

Waving away my stupid thoughts, I concentrated on writing out the story. I heard Nudge whisper to Angel in the background, and tried to ignore her as she gasped dramatically. "Fang actually quit moping and started to _write!_" Nudge said in a loud whisper. "This is amazing!"

Angel giggled, and I saw her nod out of the corner of my eye. "Totally," she agreed in an equally loud whisper.

"You know, I can hear you," I informed them, my pencil not stopping on the page. They both giggled again before falling silent. I focused my attention back on the page, occasionally glancing back at the stencil book for guidance. Thank goodness my brain actually thinks something smart every once in awhile. I smirked triumphantly at the now half-filled sheet of binder paper. I was _writing, _and there was nothing that stupid paper could do about it!

Maybe my brain needs to think smart things more often…

But I digress. I kept writing, still marveling that I was churning out something half-decent. It was almost a Christmas miracle. Except for the fact that it was mid-August. So maybe not a Christmas miracle, but a miracle nevertheless.

Max might actually like this…

o.O.o:O:o.O.o

**MPOV**

I walked into the kitchen again around six thirty, my stomach growling again. What could I say? I have a high metabolism. "Hey Max," Iggy greeted me from the stove. "We're having sloppy joe tonight. I'm too lazy to make anything else."

I whacked him on the shoulder in greeting. "How'd you know it was me?" I asked. "I wasn't talking or anything."

Iggy set down his stirring spoon on the counter and turned to face me. "Well, you see Max, I could _smell _you because you never shower," he teased.

I promptly whacked him again.

"Ow! Jeez, isn't someone a bundle of sunshine today?" Iggy grumbled, turning back to the sloppy joe simmering on the stove.

"How did you know it was me?" I insisted. I was curious, and when I'm curious, I find what I'm looking for. Unless it's Waldo. I can never find that stupid git…

"Nudge, Angel, and Fang aren't coming to dinner tonight, and Gazzy just left to go grab something from his room before you walked in," Iggy explained, stirring the sloppy joe again.

I raised an eyebrow at him, but of course the action was wasted on him. "Why aren't Ange, Nudge, and Fang coming to dinner?" I persisted.

"Nudge and Ange are working on a little princess project, and they wrangled Fang into helping them," Iggy snickered. He waved his spoon around like a magic wand, dripping sauce across the counter. "Enter, Princess Fang of America!" he tittered in a strange falsetto.

"That was creepy Igs. Never do it again," I ordered. Iggy rolled his eyes, and I smirked. "When's food ready?" I asked, changing the subject.

"Right now. Gaz should be back in a moment, and I'm going to bring the princesses some food," Iggy replied. He scooped the sloppy joe onto six buns, and set them down on a plate. "I'll be right back." Iggy carefully picked the plate up and headed out of the kitchen.

"Don't fall down the stairs again!" I called after him.

"That was one time!" he yelled back. I laughed at the memory. It was really funny when Iggy tripped down the stairs that one time, but it would be messy if he fell holding sloppy joes. And no doubt, Iggy would find a way to make it so I was the one who cleaned it up.

Gazzy ambled in quietly, bee-lining for the sloppy joe pan. "Hey Gasser," I greeted him, ruffling his messy blond hair. Gazzy smiled at me as he spooned the sloppy joe onto a couple buns for himself.

"Hi Max. I'm so happy Iggy made sloppy joe! It's my absolute favorite!" Gazzy smiled wider as he brought his steaming plate to the table. I raised an eyebrow at him as I started making my own sloppy joes.

"You said burgers were your favorite," I reminded him. "And I remember you saying that fried rice was your favorite, too."

"I have a lot of favorites," Gazzy replied agreeably, chomping a huge bite out of his sandwich. I smiled, shaking my head in mock despair as I brought my own sloppy joes to the table and sat down with him. We ate in silence for awhile until Iggy returned, an expression of utter indignation on his face.

"Those princesses have no respect for chefs," he muttered, going to the counter to build his own sandwiches.

"Princesses?" Gazzy snickered. "Isn't Fang up there?"

"Yeah, Princess Fang," Iggy replied. "He and his royal cohorts shooed me out of the room as soon as they could. Apparently they aren't to be disturbed anymore until they say they're ready to reveal their project. How dare they enjoy my cooking like that!"

"Chill Igs," I ordered, smiling slightly. "Let the princesses have their fun."

We ate in a quieter manner than usual, focusing on eating with the occasional musing on what the princesses were doing upstairs. "You know why it's so quiet?" Gazzy said suddenly, setting down his second burger for a moment.

"Why?" Iggy prompted through a mouthful of sloppy joe.

"It's because Nudge is upstairs with their royal highnesses Fang and Angel," Gazzy reasoned. "She usually talks so much that we don't really have to say very much, so we aren't used to having to actually talk to each other."  
"Good call, Gaz," I murmured. What Gazzy said was true, no matter how sad it was.

We finished our dinner in silence, further proving Gazzy's point. As soon as he finished eating, Gazzy dropped his plate in the sink and sped out of the kitchen. He was up the stairs and shut in his room before I could try to remind him that he had to wash his own dishes. I turned to Iggy to say something about Gazzy's swift getaway, when Iggy's face turned a peculiar shade of purple. He raced out of the kitchen as fast as he could, and I was left sitting there, alone and utterly confused.

I found Iggy in the bathroom, furthering his relationship with the toilet by gifting it with the contents of his stomach. I decided to leave him to it. Iggy had a strange stomach, and some random foods didn't agree with him for some reason or another. He would probably be speaking with the toilet for a couple more hours, and then be completely fine.

I walked back into the kitchen and grabbed the plates off the table, carrying them to the sink along with Gazzy's. I stood there for a moment, weighing my options. I could let the dishes molder in the sink until someone else was forced to wash them, or I could be a good person and wash them myself.

I dearly wanted to choose Option A. However, since I am indeed a good person, I decided to go with Option B. Oh, the things that I do for my flock.

I had finished scrubbing Gazzy's plate and mine when Angel skipped in carrying the plate Iggy had sent up earlier, and a camera. She was dressed in a fluffy pink tutu over her purple corduroys, and there was a glittery silver tiara on her head. Her wings were bedazzled with pink glitter, and they twinkled merrily in the kitchen lights. Angel smiled sweetly at me as she handed me the plate, bouncing up and down on her toes. "Thank you Max," she told me.

"No prob, Ange," I replied affectionately. "Did Fang and Nudge help you with your costume?"

"Yep!" Angel confirmed happily. Nudge curled my hair, and made my crown, and Fang sprinkled the glitter on my wings! He didn't want pink sparkles on his wings, though, so we put gold glitters instead."

"Somehow, I can't see Fang with pink glitter on his wings," I whispered. Angel giggled, and nodded vigorously in reply. She started walking out, and I turned back to the sink, rinsing another plate under the faucet. There was a click, and I whirled around, wielding the sudsy plate as a weapon.

The only thing I saw was Angel giggling as she held the camera up to her face. "You look so pretty, Max!" she exclaimed, studying the photo she had taken. I relaxed, lowering the plate and smiling at her.

"Thanks, Ange," I muttered playfully, continuing to wash the dish in my hand. With a final giggle, Angel raced up the stairs and disappeared into her room. I shook my head as I toweled the last plate dry. Those princesses were up to something, I was sure of it.

When the last plate was cleaned and stored away, I walked up the stairs and headed for the bathroom to grab a candy bar from my secret stash. The stash was so secret that I had blocked my mind completely in the area where I thought about its existence. This meant that even Angel didn't know about it, so I had my candy bars all to myself.

I had just decided I was going to munch on a Snickers bar while I reread my favorite book when Nudge and Angel came careening out of their room. Nudge was decked out in a similar outfit to Angel's, except that her tut was purple, her skinny jeans hot pink, and there was violet glitter instead of pink liberally strewn all over her dark brown wings. "Max!" they squealed together, cutting me off en route to the bathroom.

"What's up, your highnesses?" I asked them teasingly.

Nudge looked at me seriously, her expression a little incongruous with her outfit. "Max, will you please do something for us?" Nudge pleaded, her eyes huge.

I took a precautionary step backward. "What do you want?" I hedged, looking them over suspiciously. Those mutant glittery ballerina princesses were all the same. You can never trust them.

"Can you please play dress-up with us, and listen with us while Fang reads us a story?" Angel asked sweetly, her blue eyes pleading with me to say yes.

I balked. I still couldn't get my dream about Fang off my mind, not to mention the kitchen encounter this morning. Did I really want to face Fang again after those?

"Please?" Angel and Nudge chorused, their voices begging and adorable. I growled in reply, and they took it as a yes. "Yay!" they squealed in unison, high-fiving each other.

"Thank you soooo much Max, you won't regret it, I promise!" Nudge babbled, grabbing my hand and dragging me into my room. The duo sat me down on my bed, and bolted out again. "We'll be right back! We're getting your dress!" Nudge called as she raced into her room.

I sat up straight on my bed. "Dress?" I echoed, apprehension creeping into my voice. Immediately, Angel and Nudge reappeared, carrying a gold tiara, several bits of jewelry, a pair of golden sandals, a jar of golden glitter, and _a dress._

o.O.o:O:o.O.o

The dress was thankfully not among the types of dresses I had read about to the girls last night, the kind with a huge hoopskirt and pearls and silk. Instead, it was slim cut and simple, made of a smooth green material. I raised an eyebrow at Nudge, who smiled cheerfully. She was always trying to get me to wear green; according to her, it was my color. "Do you like it?" Angel asked hopefully, her eyes wide as she gazed at me.

"Uh, yeah, Ange," I stuttered, trying hard to be sincere. "It's beautiful."

"Yay! I'm glad you think so! Can you go put it on now, Max, please, 'cause I really want to curl your hair and we need to have enough time to hear the whole story!" Nudge babbled, shoving the dress in my hands. I laid the dress down on my bed and watched as Angel and Nudge turned their faces to the walls, still chattering happily about how excited they were for Fang to read them a story. I half-smiled at the thought as I stripped off my t-shirt and jeans, carefully easing my wings out of the slits in the back of my shirt. Picking up the green dress, I unzipped the back and cautiously stepped into it. It was kind of hard to pull it up, but that was probably because my experience with dresses was a zero.

It was soft and silky, hugging my stomach and hips in a kind of comforting way. I zipped the zipper up, only to find that the dress was backless. A smile dawned on my face as I realized this meant I could keep my wings out without having to slit the back of the dress. Nudge and Angel had certainly thought ahead on this.

"Are you done?" Angel asked, pausing in her conversation with Nudge.

"Yeah," I replied, adjusting the halter ties around my neck. "How do I look?"

"Great!" Nudge squealed, hopping up and down as she caught sight of me. "Can we put glitter in your wings like we did with ours, please?"

"Sure, whatever," I sighed. Secretly, I thought the glitter would look really cool on my wings. I have always been kind of a sucker for shiny things.

Nudge and Angel each took one of my wings and a handful of gold glitter, carefully smoothing and sprinkling the sparkles among my feathers. I enjoyed the soft feel of their fingers on my feathers; it was almost like getting a wing massage. "There," Angel announced, stepping back and gently dropping my left wing. "All done! Now we just need the shoes and your tiara!" Angel skipped back over to my bed and picked up the pair of shoes, handing them to me.

I dangled them in front of my face, scrutinizing them carefully. There was a subtle heel, only about an inch high, and it was sturdy and thick, too. The sandal itself was metallic gold, with thin straps winding around each other and weaving over and under in a cool pattern across the top.

I smiled. They were acceptable. I sat down on the floor next to the bed and slowly started to slide my foot into the shoe, carefully buckling it around my ankle to secure the straps. While I put on the sandals, Nudge and Angel had armed themselves with a brush apiece and had started combing out the snarls of my hair. Then I had to wait while Nudge fastidiously curled each and every lock of hair on my head for exactly two minutes each.

"Done!" Nudge finally squealed. "Now let me put in your tiara…" Her voice trailed off as she picked the gold crown up off my bed. I vaguely wondered where she had gotten all the props; the tiaras she was using on herself, Angel, and I were all metal, with tiny white gems set into the intricate whorls and loops.

The tiara settled softly onto my head, and I could feel the cool metal pressing against my warm, loose curls of hair. "We shouldn't do makeup, however fun it would be," Angel sighed softly. "It would ruin the image."

"Sadly, it would," Nudge agreed. "Max has too much natural beauty."

I opened my mouth to argue when Angel cut me off. "Go look at yourself in the mirror, Max!" she urged me. "You look beautiful!" Nudge and Angel marched me over to my closet, where the doors were sliding mirror panels instead of wood. I took a deep breath before looking up into the mirror, where I promptly gasped.

This wasn't me. This was some sort of recombinant DNA bird princess.

The princess in the mirror looked at me in surprise, apparently not expecting to see me staring at her. Her hair curled loosely around her bare shoulders, and there was a golden, jewel-studded tiara resting on her head. She had wings just like mine, except hers were strewn with twinkling golden sparkles that shimmered in the light. Her dress was gorgeous, deep green with a halter neck and a simple, fitted bodice. The skirt fell close around her legs, ending just above her ankles. She wore golden sandals on her feet, and they glimmered as she shifted slightly.

This princess was beautiful.

"Oh, we forgot your necklace!" Nudge's voice broke in on my thoughts, interrupting my scrutiny of the princess. "Here." Nudge stood in front of my view of the princess, and her image showed up in front of the princess. She was fastening something cold around my neck, and when she stepped away, I could see that the princess was now wearing a thin gold chain bearing an emerald green teardrop.

This forced me to admit that I knew the princess was me. Who knew that I could look that pretty? I certainly didn't.

"Okay now, let's go listen to Fang read us a story!" Angel said happily. "I can't wait!"

"Me neither!" Nudge agreed, bouncing up and down. Her tutu fluffed out around her waist, and she grabbed my arm, dragging me away from my princess reflection. "Let's go, Princess Maximum!"

I was in somewhat of a daze, still shocked by my transformation into Princess Maximum, and didn't quite register our trip to Angel and Nudge's room. Fang was already inside, waiting on Angel's bed and holding on tightly to a thin paper booklet. I barely noticed the book though, because I was too busy gaping at Fang.

He was wearing a pair of black pants, a black, long-sleeve dress shirt, and a pair of black dress shoes. The color didn't shock me, but the fanciness of his clothes was certainly much higher par than usual. A golden crown sat amid his dark hair, sparkling slightly as he stood up to greet us and catching the light on its white crystals. His wings looked like the night sky, a black background sprinkled with hundreds of glowing golden stars. The gold glitter was obviously the most effective on his wings.

"Umm, hi Fang," I said, breaking the silence I hadn't realized had formed.

Fang seemed to focus more, his eyes riveted on me. "Sup, Princess Max?" he asked, a smirk forming on his lips. I rolled my eyes, but I was glad for the tension breaker. It made things feel more normal, like we did this all the time (which we most certainly did not).

Nudge and Angel giggled happily as they climbed onto their beds in their tutus and tiaras. "Fang, read us your story!" Nudge urged him. "I really really really really want to hear it! Max, Fang _wrote _this story all by himself!" Nudge looked thrilled at the very thought. "Isn't that amazing?"

"I didn't know you wrote, Fangles," I drawled. "Is it gonna be the next great American novel?"

"No," he replied seriously. "Frankly, it kind of sucks. But it gets the point across."

"Just start reading, Fang," Angel suggested. "I can't wait to hear it!"

"Okay, Ange," Fang agreed. "Princess Max, please take a seat." I raised an eyebrow at him, but sat down on Nudge's bed next to her. "Okay, let's begin."

o.O.o:O:o.O.o

_ Once upon a time, there was a girl who wanted nothing more from life than to be free. She was a slave to her family, whom she loved very much. There was nothing cruel or evil about them, but they were unknowingly pinning the girl down. She had her very own set of beautiful swan wings, but she couldn't use them, not without forever leaving her family._

_ This girl's name was Marina._

_ Marina took care of her family since she was a child, because her parents were always away on royal court business. She had many brothers and sisters, almost too many to count, and she took care of them all, loving each one for themselves. The youngest of them even called her their mother._

Fang turned the page, and there was a full-color photo that I recognized. It was me, washing dishes in the sink. My hair was tossed up in a messy ponytail, but that was all that was the same about my appearance. My wings were completely white, with black edges on the bottom row of feathers, and I was wearing a raggedy, pale blue dress. There were dark smudges under my eyes, but I was smiling determinedly.

Have I ever mentioned that Nudge is a wizard at Photoshop?

_One day, when Marina was fourteen, she received an invitation to the royal ball, but she decided there were too many dishes to wash, and she couldn't possibly attend. Plus, she had absolutely nothing to wear to such a fancy gathering._

_ Marina cried as she rinsed plate after plate, cup after cup, fork after spoon after knife, in the cold water brimming in the basin. Her tears dripped down into the water and mixed with the suds, disappearing in the dirty water._

_ Suddenly, there was a flash, and a girl a few years younger than her was sitting on the counter. She was dressed in a purple tutu, pink leggings, and soft white slippers, and a small silver tiara sat on top of her brown curls. The thing that shocked Marina the most though, was the sparkling brown wings cascading down the girl's back. She had never seen another girl with wings before, she was the only one of her siblings who had them. "Who are you?" Marina cried out, dropping the cup she was washing into the basin._

Here, Fang flipped the page again, and there was a photo of Nudge in her costume, smiling brightly at the camera and flexing her glittering wings. I smiled. Nudge was always the most photogenic of us, besides Gazzy.

_ The girl smiled cheerfully at her. "ZOMG, I'm your fairy god sister!" she exclaimed, hopping off the counter. "My name is Nudge, and I'm here to make sure you get to the ball tonight. I'll wash your dishes, and look after your siblings, and give you something to wear! Let's get started, now, shall we?" Nudge waved her hand and flapped her wings four times, causing several clouds of glitter to float off them and descend on Marina._

_ Instantly Marina was transformed. Her ratty blue dress became a flowing green ball gown laden with golden gems, and emerald slippers adorned her feet. A golden tiara was settled in her hair, and her white wings began to glow with golden sparkles. She was beautiful._

_ "Now make sure you get to the ball and dance with Prince Niklaus, then get back here by midnight! Okay?" Nudge twirled happily, and glitter flew off her wings. The sparkles descended on the dishes in the wash basin, and they began to clean themselves._

_ Marina frowned. "Wait a sec. How am I supposed to freaking __get __to the ball?" she demanded. "I don't have a ride or all that jazz."_

I liked this Marina character. We had a lot in common.

_"Fly, silly! You have wings!" Nudge squealed, pushing Marina out the door. Marina stumbled in her high heeled sandals, and almost faceplanted in the dirt. Luckily, her glittering swan wings flapped, and she was lifted into the sky._

_ Marina flew all the way to the ball, where she showed the guard at the gate her invitation. He escorted her inside, and she stepped straight into the party without a second thought. Marina was impulsive, and trusted her gut. Her gut told her this was going to be great._

_ When Prince Niklaus arrived, she wasn't impressed. He was dressed all in black, and there was a gold crown on his black-haired head, but other than that, Marina didn't see anything special about him._

_ Until he turned around, and she saw his ink black wings._

_ Marina pushed and shoved her way to the prince, who merely regarded her coolly, no emotion visible on his face. "You have wings too," Marina stated bluntly, pointing at the prince's feathers._

_ He simply nodded in reply._

_ "I have wings," Marina continued stubbornly. She flexed her wings, making them sparkle wildly in the chandelier light._

_ Prince Niklaus raised a single eyebrow. _

_ "Why do we have wings?" Marina persisted, not pleased with the prince's silence._

_ He shrugged._

_ "Will you dance with me, then?" Marina asked, exasperated. _

_ Prince Niklaus smiled at her suddenly, and she blinked at the brightness of it. He grasped her hand gently, surprised to feel the calluses on his hands match up with the ones on hers. He had never met a noble lady with rough hands before, ever. This girl was certainly different, with wings __and__ rough hands! _

_ The two danced for a long time, ignoring all other requests for dances. Niklaus said very little to Marina, but she didn't mind. They just enjoyed each other's presence. However, Prince Samuel finally pried Marina out of Prince Niklaus' arms, much to his extreme displeasure. When he saw Marina laughing with the other prince, he grew extremely jealous and immediately asked the beautiful, red-haired Princess Lissanta to dance with him._

Prince Samuel? Princess Lissanta? Why do those names sound so familiar?...

_ Prince Niklaus soon regretted his decision when the princess latched onto his neck in the middle of their dance and pressed her lips against his in a forceful kiss. Surprised and caught off guard, the prince couldn't react for a moment. When Princess Lissanta finally broke away, smiling coquettishly, the only thing Niklaus saw was Marina's shocked face. She backed slowly away from Prince Samuel, and ran out of the ballroom. Niklaus bolted away from Princess Lissanta, running after Marina. He was just gaining on her when she jumped and took to the skies, her beautiful, glittering wings shining in the moonlight. He could only stare at her as she flew away. He didn't know how to use his own wings. Maybe he could ask her to teach hi-_

_ Niklaus realized he didn't know the winged girl's name._

_ The next day, Niklaus set off on his horse in search of the winged girl. He knew she couldn't be just anybody, because of her wings and the callused hands he had loved holding. Niklaus immediately set off for the manor furthest away from the palace, the home of his father's most loyal courtiers. Unbeknownst to him, Marina was crying on Nudge's shoulder inside the manor, surrounded by her sympathetic siblings._

_ Niklaus knocked on the door, and was utterly surprised and overjoyed to find Marina answer it! She gave him one frightened look, though, and tried to slam the door shut. Niklaus managed to slip inside though, and he pulled Marina into his arms. She instantly stopped struggling, somehow soothed by being encircled by his arms. "What's your name?" Niklaus asked softly, stroking her hair._

_ "Marina," she whispered in reply, unable to raise her voice to a louder volume._

_ "Marina," he echoed, savoring the name on his tongue. "Marina, will you marry me?"_

_ Marina promptly began struggling again. "No, I can't marry you! I have my siblings to care for, there's things to do, I just learned to fly! I can't be pinned down by marriage!" she protested. Niklaus touched a finger to her lips, and she quieted. He leaned closer, and Marina fidgeted nervously. "What are you doing?" she whispered, her eyes riveted on his._

_ "Helping you change your mind," he breathed, pressing his lips against hers._

_ Kissing Marina was unlike anything Niklaus had ever experienced. It was exhilarating, and thrilling, and amazing. Niklaus never wanted to stop._

_ Abruptly, though, Marina broke away from him, and tugged his arms away from around her. She couldn't look in his eyes as she ran for the door. Before Niklaus could move, Marina had flung open the door and flown away._

_ Niklaus was in despair. He couldn't follow her anywhere now, since he couldn't use his wings. What was the point of them anyway, if they didn't work? "You need the glitter to fly, silly," a young voice giggled at him. Niklaus whirled around, and beheld a young girl in a pink tutu and purple leggings floating by the ceiling. She had pure white wings that shimmered pink, and a small silver tiara on her golden curls. "Before you ask," she added. "I'm your fairy god sister, Angel. I'm going to give you glitter so you can fly after Marina. You have to convince her that you love her, Niklaus."_

Whoa whoa whoa, hold the phone. Niklaus loved Marina? And Angel was gonna help him get her? But I liked Marina!

Well, I kinda liked Niklaus too… They _would_ be a cute couple…

Okay. Now I admit that I was rooting for Niklaus to get the girl. He deserved her, if he actually felt that way.

_Angel sprinkled golden glitter from a pouch on her belt over Niklaus' wings, and they began to shimmer. Niklaus immediately ran out the door and jumped into the air. His glittering black wings were a stark contrast against the blue sky, and Angel oohed at the sight. Niklaus smiled slightly and waved at his fairy god sister before he flew off after Marina._

_ Niklaus found Marina laid out on a white bed, sound asleep. He raised an eyebrow as he read the sign next to her head. "Kiss me, Prince, my true love, and I will awaken and be forever yours."_

_ This sounded distinctly like something Marina would tear up and burn to ashes, then stomp on._

I decided I like this Niklaus guy even more. He was pretty awesome.

_Niklaus reread the sign. Only Marina's true love could awaken her? Suddenly, a blond guy wearing a crown strode up to the sign, and Niklaus noted silently that this guy also had wings. Where were all these winged people popping up from?_

_ "I am Prince Dylano," the blond guy announced. "And I will kiss this beautiful maiden and awaken her. We will be forever happy together."_

_ Niklaus wanted to barf._

I do too, Niklaus, I do too. Dylano is a butthead.

_Dylano leaned down and planted a kiss squarely on Marina's lips, and Niklaus wanted to barf even more. Thankfully for Niklaus' heart, Marina didn't move a muscle, simply continuing to sleep on. "What?" Dylano exclaimed, enraged. "I don't understand! We're soulmates!"_

_ Niklaus raised an eyebrow at him, then pushed Dylano aside. He bent down over Marina and kissed her lips. It was as exciting as the first time, and Niklaus could feel his heartbeat quicken. Finally, he lifted his head from Marina' s, and watched as her eyes opened and she sat up. "Niklaus?" she breathed, not noticing Dylano. "What are you doing here?"_

_ "I love you," Niklaus said simply, looking in Marina's eyes._

_ Marina flinched and looked away. "I have to go," she whispered, jumping up from the bed. She took off and flew away, and Niklaus flew right after her. Marina was surprised when she saw him behind her, but she simply pumped her wings faster, and easily outstripped him. Unfortunately for Niklaus, Marina was a much faster flier than he was._

_ Finally, Niklaus landed in an apple tree grove. Marina was passed out beneath it, a red apple in her hand with a single bite taken out of it. Niklaus was very distressed as soon as he saw how pale she was. "Marina!" he yelled, running to her. A young boy popped out from behind a tree and gawked at Niklaus._

_ "I told her not to eat Gramma's apples," the boy said dutifully, eyeing the prone Marina. "But she just rolled her eyes and said 'bite me!' Then she bit Gramma's apple, and now she's dead."_

_ "Dead?" Niklaus whispered, his heart stopping as he kneeled next to Marina. _

_ "Yep!" the boy confirmed gleefully. Niklaus ignored the morbid little boy, instead lifting Marina into his arms. Abruptly, she began to choke, and Niklaus' heart began to beat again._

_ "Marina?" he asked, pounding her back. Marina spat out a chunk of apple, and glared at it distastefully. "Marina! You're alive!"_

_ "Stupid apple," Marina muttered spitefully. Niklaus smiled at her words, and suddenly leaned over and kissed Marina again. Marina's eyes fluttered shut and she melted into Niklaus' hold, until she realized what was happening. Marina jumped out of his arms and yelled, "Stop following me!"_

_ Niklaus watched her sadly. "You can't run from me forever, Marina. I love you."_

_ "Shut up!" she snapped, jumping into the air yet again. This time, Niklaus followed Marina all the way across the country, until they came to a strange castle. _

_ "Prince Niklaus! Oh prince! Please save me!" A familiar voice called up to the flying royals. Niklaus glanced down, and groaned when he recognized Princess Lissanta's red hair billowing in the wind as she waved at him from one of the castle turrets. Niklaus landed in the turret, sighing as he raised an eyebrow at the princess._

What? No, Niklaus! Don't stop for the redhead! What are you doing?

_ "What do you want, Lissanta?" Niklaus asked dully, not realizing that Marina was perched in the turret behind him, watching curiously as he spoke with the princess._

_ "There's an awful beast keeping me captive here!" Lissanta wailed, clinging to Niklaus' black shirt. "Save me from it!" _

_ The beast stalked threateningly into the room, but Niklaus eyed him calmly. "That's not a beast, Lissanta. This is my friend Iggy."_

OH MY FNICK FANG JUST PWNED IGGY IN A PRINCESS STORY. THAT IS EPIC.

_"Oh," Lissanta realized. "Okay then." Lissanta skipped over to Iggy and leaped into his arms. Iggy carried her out of the turret and out of sight, and Marina and Niklaus were left standing awkwardly in the turret._

_ "Can I kiss you again?" Niklaus asked bluntly._

_ "No!" Marina jumped off the turret and flew away __again._

_ Niklaus sighed. "It was worth a shot," he muttered to himself before flying off the turret to follow Marina again. This time, Marina had headed for home, and Niklaus followed her all the way there. They set down in front of Marina's manor, and walked inside. Angel and Nudge were painting their nails inside, but they jumped up when the two walked in._

_ "ZOMG are you two together yet? Because you obviously love each other, and I think you'd be the cutest couple ever!" Nudge squealed, hopping up and down. Niklaus looked meaningfully at Marina, who pointedly avoided his gaze._

_ "I've been __trying__ to get her to marry me," Niklaus reported, almost whiningly. Angel and Nudge squealed simultaneously, and Marina was blushing heavily. Niklaus turned to Marina and held her face in his hands. Marina had no choice but to look in his eyes, and Niklaus poured all of what he was feeling into his gaze. "Marina, I'll ask you one more time. Will you marry me?"_

Fang closed the book. I stared at him incredulously, standing up. Nudge and Angel applauded, but I couldn't believe my ears. "Was that it?" I demanded, glaring at Fang. Fang stood up too, looking me coolly in the eye.

"That's it," he confirmed. I rolled my eyes.

"Of course you can't even finish a story," I muttered. "You left us hanging!"

"Well, I don't know the end to the story yet," Fang retorted, his eyes flashing.

"What do you mean, you don't know the end?" I demanded. "You're the author!"

"But I have to ask you a question, first, before I can end the story," Fang explained, like that made things clearer.

It didn't.

"I don't understand," I said slowly, looking away. Fang caught my face in his hands, though, and I had no choice but to look back in his eyes.

Fang was staring at me with an intensity in his eyes that I could barely stand. "Marina," he whispered. "Will you go out with me?"

My brain froze for a moment, and everything made sense. _I _was Marina. Fang was Niklaus. This was a way for him to ask me out…

Fang was still staring at me, not blinking once. I couldn't speak.

So I kissed him instead.

Fang let go of my chin and let his hands slide down to my waist. He pulled me closer against him, and my eyes flickered shut. I wrapped my arms around him, holding onto him tightly, like he might disappear.

I was Marina, and here was my Niklaus.

**Was it worth the wait? I'd love to know your opinion.**

Angel opened Fang's book, flipping directly to the back. In large, unsteady letters, she scribbled

_Marina stared at Niklaus for a long moment, before reaching up and kissing him straight on the lips. They stayed like that for awhile, completely unaware of the celebration going on around them. When they finally broke apart, Marina smiled cheekily up at Niklaus. "I think that's enough of an answer," she breathed._

_ Niklaus kissed her again._

_ And they all lived happily ever after._

_**~TMI~**_


End file.
